Extension cord or not?

[xman]

Hi,

I am planning to put in a small pond 140 gallon close to my patio that has a GFI outlet. The pond is located about 20 ft from the outlet. The pump comes with a 16 foot cord, which means that I am still 4 ft short from the outlet.
What are my options? I have a couple of small kids and do not want any risks.
I cannot move the pond any closer. Can I use a extension cord in this case? what are the risks?

thanks,
xman

 

[DrDave]

Can you extend your outlet by adding on? A simple junction box and some conduit will do it.

 

[xman]

DrDave,

Sorry, I am not too savvy electrically. Is this something that I can buy at home depot? Does the end of the conduit plug into the existing outlet? or do I have to run some wire from the existing outlet to the junction box? Will the conduit have to be buried?

thanks,
xman

 

[oldmarine]

Hi,
I'm new to ponding also, but I installed an underground 110 four GFI outlet next to my filtration reservor. It runs to my garage that has it's own 15 amp breaker. If I have to work on anything around or in the pond, I simply turn off the breaker. Trust me, it's worth the expense.:banana:

 

[oldmarine]

Oh,

I forgot something. The electrical source to my pond is now all out of sight with no ungly cords visible. Over the weather proof four outlet box is a fake PVC rock that is approx. 12"x8"x6", and it helps make the pond area look much more natural. :banana:

 

[DrDave]

Old marine is right. If you can't afford to have it done and don't know how, there are plenty of web sites with photos on how to do these things. you just have to Google them. It is very simple and anyone can do it. Shut off the electricity before making the final connection to the live circuit.

I taught my 10 year old how to do it 30 years ago and he has used this knowlege many times since.

 

[xman]

Thanks for the replies. I can see how installing an outlet close to the pond is the safest and cleanest way to go. But in my case there is an outlet that is 20 ft away from the pond, the pump has a cord of 16ft so the difference is only four feet.
Even if I install an outlet a couple of feet away from the pump, I will still have to plug the cord from the pump in it, does this not mean that a few feet of cord will still be exposed to the elements?
How is this different from extending the 16 ft cord from the pump by a few feet adding a 4 ft extension cord? Sorry I am asking all these questions.

thanks,
xman

 

[c2c7390]

i use an extension cord...i just made sure that the ends were protected from the elements

 

[koiguy1969]

YOU ALREADY HAVE A GFI OUTLET it wont hurt a thing to use an extension cord, just make sure its 3 wired (grounded) i use one and i siliconed the plug joint and buried it. i use a four plug GFI box extention cord at the pond

 

[DrDave]

Just make sure it is protected if you bury it illegally. Someone with a shovel may be "shocked" to find it.

 

[27goldfish]

what kind of ground is it laying on? Why not put the extention cord in pvc and bury that pvc? That will save you from having somebody dig it up.

 

[oldmarine]

Hi from Tacoma,

After putting in my small (365 gallon) in ground pond, I had to use an extension cord. The problem was that it was always in the way of being cut or tripped over.

It took me a few months, but I trenched a 110 volt electrical pvc from a 15 amp breaker in the garage to a four outlet GFI next to the filter reservor at the pond. Now it is all out of sight, and I can turn off the breaker in the garage when I need to clean the filter.

Works well for me.